Stefano Fanti, CEO of Fanti Packaging and son of Gruppo Fanti founder Giorgio Fanti, was among those addressing those gathered Thursday to celebrate the opening of the company’s first U.S.-based manufacturing facility. Fanti USA, located in the Half Moon Industrial Park in Weirton, will begin production in the coming weeks. (Photo by Craig Howell)

WEIRTON, W.Va. — An Italian company has opened its first manufacturing plant in the U.S. in Weirton.

After five years of work and planning, representatives of Gruppo Fanti, the Business Development Corp. of the Northern Panhandle, the City of Weirton and others gathered Thursday to celebrate the opening of Fanti USA.

“We believe in the United States,” explained Stefano Fanti, CEO of Fanti Packaging and son of company founder Giorgio Fanti. “We want to grow here.”

Fanti USA represents an investment of approximately $30 million into what had been a vacant building in the Half Moon Industrial Park in Weirton. According to Stefano Fanti, it also is the company’s largest expansion project ever.

Grupo Fanti traces its history to 1945 when Giorgio Fanti, a native of Bologna, Italy, recovered empty tuna cans left by American servicemen who were there as part of efforts to liberate the country during World War II. Fanti studied the cans to learn how to make them himself, eventually traveling to the U.S. to learn about the production and use of tinplate.

Representatives of Gruppo Fanti were joined by local and state officials and others, Thursday, in celebrating the opening of the new Fanti USA facility in Weirton. (Photo by Craig Howell)

A few years later, Fanti purchased his first sheet of tinplate, and in 1963 bought an automated machine to assist in production. Today, the company produces more than 100 million cans with facilities in Europe, Asia and Africa.

Nicola De Santis, treasurer and board member of Gruppo Fanti, said the company began its search for a site in the U.S. in 2018, joining local and state officials in November 2020 to announce plans to locate to the former Signode facility in Weirton, and then celebrate with a ceremonial groundbreaking in March 2022.

“Today, here, we are excited to start this new venture,” De Santis said.

Fanti USA’s goal is to create from 40 to 50 jobs. About a dozen people from the area have already been hired, some going to Italy to learn the manufacturing process, De Santis said.

“You are not only part of a company,” he said. “You also are part of a team and a family.”

Two production lines are in place at the Weirton location to make metal cans for paints, varnishes and solvents. Future plans include expanding the building and increasing the number of production lines, the company said.

Jacob Keeney, executive director of development for the BDC, cited the cooperation between local government and development groups, the West Virginia Department of Economic Development, the U.S. Department of Commerce and members of Congress in bringing Fanti to West Virginia.

“This investment today is about partnerships,” he said. “We’re very fortunate and blessed to have you here.”

The investment is “a turning point in the economic landscape of our community” abd the efforts to diversify the Upper Ohio Valley, Brooke County Commission President A.J. Thomas said. Other recent developments have been Form Energy, Pietro Fiorentini, Pure Watercraft and Bidell Gas Compression, he said.

“This significant investment will breathe new life into a previously dormant space and serves as a beacon of hope for our local economy,” Thomas said. “No single sector should make or break the prosperity of our people or our region.”